4 Causes Of Neck Arthritis

Arthritis is the condition of the joints in which they tend to become inflamed, swollen and painful. Degeneration of the joints is also involved under the category of arthritis. Arthritis is a really difficult thing to survive not because it is life-threatening, but because it makes the joints so painful to move and thus affects the mobility of a person.

However, some types of arthritis also have effects on other organs and thus can pose serious threat to life. Neck arthritis or the cervical arthritis, which is also termed as cervical spondylosisis a condition of degeneration of the cervical bones of the vertebral column. It is a degenerative condition of the discs and bones of the cervical vertebrae.

It is mostly seen in the people of older age group and occurs due to the wear and tear of the joints of the neck. What happens in neck arthritis is that, over the time, the joints and the bones of the cervical region undergo degeneration (osteoarthritis) which results in bone thickening, joint loss, bone loss and loss of height.

Causes of Neck Arthritis

When neck arthritis occurs in a person, they begin to feel pain and stiffness in the region of the neck. Pain and numbness may also be felt in the distant areas such as hands, shoulders and fingers. This is due to the disc degeneration which then causes the two cervical bones to press upon a nerve passing between them. Headache in the back part of the head and dizziness may also be felt. Rarely, symptoms such as troubles in walking, ringing in the ears, etc. may also be experienced.

In cervical spondylosis, the neck region of the vertebral column is accompanied by growth of bony spurs and troubles in the ligament and discs surrounding the affected bone. Some of the causes of Neck arthritis are mentioned as under.

A Slipped Disc Case

Slipped disc refers to the condition when there is a rupture in a disc of the spine. The vertebral column contains intervertebral discs that keep the bones apart so as to let the spinal nerves pass through the gap. These discs act as soft cushions to their respective vertebral bone.

A prolapsed or a herniated disc can cause the bones to press upon a spinal nerve which as a consequence, can affect the organ that it innervates. In the case of neck arthritis, if there is a disc slip in the cervical region, the result can be cervical radiculopathy-severe radiating pain in the arms, or, cervical myelopathy-compression of the spinal cord.

Degenerative Bone Diseases

The degenerative sort of bone diseases such as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis can be amongst the causes of neck arthritis. The second type mentioned, that is, the rheumatoid arthritis can cause destruction of the cervical bones of vertebral column and hence, result in neck arthritis.

Neck Injury Or Strain in the Neck

Any injury to the tissues of the joints of the cervical region or persistent strain in that area can also cause neck arthritis.